Leah On The Offbeat

Leah On The Offbeat by Becky Albertalli, 343 pages

“In this sequel to the acclaimed Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda--now a major motion picture, Love, Simon--we follow Simon's BFF Leah as she grapples with changing friendships, first love, and senior year angst. When it comes to drumming, Leah Burke is usually on beat--but real life isn't always so rhythmic. She's an anomaly in her friend group: the only child of a young, single mom, and her life is decidedly less privileged. She loves to draw but is too self-conscious to show it. And even though her mom knows she's bisexual, she hasn't mustered the courage to tell her friends--not even her openly gay BFF, Simon. So Leah really doesn't know what to do when her rock-solid friend group starts to fracture in unexpected ways. With prom and college on the horizon, tensions are running high. It's hard for Leah to strike the right note while the people she loves are fighting--especially when she realizes she might love one of them more than she ever intended.” I haven’t read the first book yet but it wasn’t necessary.  If I had realized before I’d started that it was a sequel I might have gone back and read it first, but I loved this story anyway.  Leah was a great character, easy to like even when she doesn’t like herself much.  This is a great read for teens who like realistic fiction or are questioning their identity.